It took Joe Gibbs a few minutes to get to his point, but after only a couple cursory questions, he was able to say that, yes, the guys sure did “play their guts out” yesterday. It’s become a mantra of his, as though we’re rooting for a team of underdog high school kids and what matters isn’t whether they win or lose, but how they play the game. No matter the futility, the mind-boggling play calls, the penalties, the turnovers — Gibbs always likes to emphasize what should be the bare minimum expected of a professional organization – that they try their best every time.

We didn’t hear many of those comments last week when the undefeated Patriots made the Skins look like they were those high school kids. But just one week removed from that relentless drubbing, Gibbs pulled out his tried-and-true explanation yet again, this time to describe a 23-20 overtime win over the now 1-8 New York Jets.

In truth, it was a game that revealed the same thing Michael Wilbon, Thomas Boswell, and others have been pointing out all season: there are 2 great teams in the NFL, half a handful more very good ones, and then the rest, slugging it out each week and getting lucky enough times to reach 9 or 10 wins and scrape into the playoffs. After beating the Jets on Sunday, the Redskins find themselves just in the top half of “the rest,” 5 wins midway through the season but only one over a team with a winning record.

So what happened yesterday? The Jets’ Leon Washington returned the opening kickoff 86 yards for a touchdown, and the Skins drove the ball well but could only manage field goals. Down 17-9 at halftime, after letting the Jets drive the ball methodically on two 10+ play drives, the Skins came back for a stronger second half. Clinton Portis found bigger and bigger holes en route to 196 yards and a TD on 36 carries, and the defense managed to actually force a couple punts and even jar loose a big fumble that resulted in the go-ahead touchdown. The one-yard leap by Portis was followed by a diving two-point conversion from Randle-El, and Washington had a 20-17 lead.